Wednesday, August 31, 2016

Waiting on Wednesday
sponsored by Jill at Breaking the Spine (details)

~*~

I'm waiting for...

Today Will Be Different
by Maria Semple
-Chick-lit
Release date: October 4, 2016Amazon | Goodreads

Eleanor knows she's a mess. But today, she will tackle the little things. She will shower and get dressed. She will have her poetry and yoga lessons after dropping off her son, Timby. She won't swear. She will initiate sex with her husband, Joe. But before she can put her modest plan into action-life happens. Today, it turns out, is the day Timby has decided to fake sick to weasel his way into his mother's company. It's also the day Joe has chosen to tell his office-but not Eleanor-that he's on vacation. Just when it seems like things can't go more awry, an encounter with a former colleague produces a graphic memoir whose dramatic tale threatens to reveal a buried family secret.

TODAY WILL BE DIFFERENT is a hilarious, heart-filled story about reinvention, sisterhood, and how sometimes it takes facing up to our former selves to truly begin living.

=====> I MUST read this because I loved Maria's first book, Where'd You Go, Bernadette so much!

That's all Luke Collins, local bad boy and motocross champion, has to not only find his redemption, but win back the girl he lost. He'll stop at nothing to make her his, even if it means playing dirty.

Lara Jacobs doesn't want her heart broken again and refuses to give Luke a second chance. After he left her after their one night stand, she ran right into the arms of her close friend, Grayson Moore. He's always loved her, and he's determined to make her see he's what she needs.

However, in life nothing goes as planned and tragedy strikes. After a fatal accident nearly claims Lara's life, she's left inside a world she can't remember. Her memories are gone, including those of the men vying for her heart. Grayson sees her loss as a possibility to forget her love for Luke, but Luke sees it as an opportunity to start over. All he wants is one last chance to show her that she's the one he's been in love with all along.

*** An updated version of One Taste (prequel to Last Chance) has been included at the beginning of the book with all new scenes. ***

About the author:

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author L. P. Dover is a southern belle living in North Carolina with her husband and two beautiful girls. Before she began her literary journey she worked in periodontics, enjoying the wonderment of dental surgeries.

She loves to write, but she also loves to play tennis, go on mountain hikes and white water rafting, and has a passion for singing. Her two youngest fans expect a concert each and every night before bedtime, usually Christmas carols.

Dover has written countless novels, including her Forever Fae series, the Second Chances series, the Gloves Off series, the Armed & Dangerous series, the Royal Shifters series, the Society X series, and her standalone novel Love, Lies, and Deception. Her favorite genre to read and write is romantic suspense, but if she got to choose a setting in which to live, it would be with her faeries in the Land of the Fae.

When Colin Cavendish, the new earl of Drayson, informs Lucy Beresford that she and her mother need to vacate the house they’ve called home for the past two years, Lucy is fit to be tied. They have no money, no relations they can turn to for help, and nowhere to go. How dare the earl break the promise his father had made to the Beresfords without so much as a twinge of conscience?

Fate plays her hand when Lucy discovers the earl unconscious and injured in the middle of the road. When he awakens with no recollection of who he is, Lucy seizes the opportunity to teach the earl a much-needed lesson in humility and tells him that he is nothing more than a mere servant. Her servant, in fact.

And thus begins the charming tale of a pompous lord and an impetuous young woman, caught together in a web so tangled that it begs the question: Will they ever get out?

Book Excerpt:

He stared at her incredulously, as though she had escaped Bedlam. “Are you in your right mind, woman?”

Lucy leaned forward and planted her palms on his bed so that her eyes were level with his. “My name is Lucy Beresford. I have lived in Askern all my life. I’m the sole daughter of a vicar and a seamstress who lived most happily despite their differences in station. When my father passed away, I came here, to this dower house. So yes, I am in my right mind. It is you who are not.”

The earl’s jaw clenched, and Lucy took some pleasure at the sight. Perhaps he would come down off his high horse and show at least a small amount of kindness or respect.

“I may not know who I am or where I came from,” he finally said, “but at least I do not feel the need to tell tales.”

“Tell tales?” Lucy gaped at him. Was he accusing her of telling untruths? Her, of all people? What untruths? How dare he!

Lord Drayson glanced down at his fingers, frowning when he spotted grime under his nails. He began to scrape it out as he spoke. “Claiming to be the daughter of a vicar and seamstress is all very romantic, but it cannot possibly be the truth.”

“And why not?” she asked.

His gaze returned to hers. “In my experience, the daughter of a vicar would behave with more decorum, would know how to make a palatable broth, and would never allow herself to be alone in a room with a man who is not her relative. If there is one thing I know with absolute certainty, it is that you are no relation of mine.”

Lucy’s jaw clenched as she fought to control the rage building inside her. Ever so slowly, she pushed herself up to standing and glared down at the earl. “You are correct in thinking I am no ordinary vicar’s daughter. I do not love unconditionally. I show decorum only when I wish to. And I despise those who care for no one but themselves. But I do not tell tales.”

He actually chuckled, but it was more of a scoff than a show of humor. “Did you learn those traits from your father?”

“Do not speak of my father.”

“I would prefer to speak of myself, but you do not seem to share that preference, so perhaps we should speak of your father instead. Where is he, by the by? I would very much like to meet him.”

Lucy’s fingers became fists while her conscience became a battleground between all that was good and evil inside her. It was a short battle, with evil making a quick triumph.

Ever so slowly, her body still trembling with anger, she lifted her chin. If he was going to accuse her of telling tales, then tell them she would. “Very well, Collins. If you must know, I am your employer. And though you may not remember me, or this house, or your position in it, or the fact that you are perfectly susceptible to coming off a horse, just like any other human, I still expect some kindness and respect from you.”

“What on earth are you talking about? What position?”

There was not a hint of hesitation in her voice when she answered. “You are a servant in this house.”

About the author:
A USA Today bestselling author, Rachael Anderson is the mother of four and is pretty good at breaking up fights, or at least sending guilty parties to their rooms. She can’t sing, doesn’t dance, and despises tragedies. But she recently figured out how yeast works and can now make homemade bread, which she is really good at eating.

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

Saturday, August 27, 2016

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

A struggling novelist and a young waitress strike up an extramarital relationship that promises to forever change the course of their lives.

=====> Started watching this earlier, but finally getting around to finishing it. It is one of those more than meets the eye kind of stories. Love the format and style of this storytelling with he said/she said sequences.

=====> A fun one to flip through in the summertime. This is a coffee table art book of photos of beaches especially with beach umbrellas. I want to visit Faraglioni, Capri Italy which is pictured here.

~*~

* comment and TELL me what you have acquired for your shelves recently

First sentence(s):
My three older sisters - Saige, Sadie, and Samantha - are all staring at me as if I just committed some type of cardinal sin or something.

My sisters think I’m crazy.

But, I’ve never forgotten the mysterious woman from my childhood who told me Paul is the name of my one true love.
She told me to search far and wide for him.
I haven’t stopped looking ever since.

When I stumble across an article about a successful American entrepreneur named Paul who lives and works in China, I’m intrigued. When the opportunity to teach English in China presents itself on the same day, I know it’s not a coincidence.

It’s destiny.

My sisters say I’m chasing a dream.

Just like the fireflies we tried to catch on the warm summer evenings of our youth, the dream seems beyond my grasp. Will my quest for the elusive Paul always be just short of fulfillment?

My sisters tell me it’s a fool’s errand.

Until I remind them of the day we saw the Red Bird.
The memory silences them.
The Red Bird Incident remains inarguable—and proves my search for Paul is not a silly fantasy.

I will find Paul . . . I will.

My two-bits:
The matchmaker's hand made an early appearance in the protagonist's life in this storyline which gave an interesting twist to the usual mode of this series.

In this story the main character, Savannah, is set to search and seek out her love which is somewhat defined, by name. What a funny concept - to pursue only men with the "name" - in this case Paul. It was sad to see what she went through in this pursuit. To restrict experiences with other people based on certain criteria was sad.

Got me thinking of fortunes and futures foretold and how much of it do you allow them to guide your life.

But as the story unfolds and Savannah's history revealed, her actions makes sense which made me want to continue with her story to find out if she finds her true love.

I liked the character growth of Savannah and her friends in this story - all mostly in the romance department.

Also, liked learning about the teacher/travel exchange program and living abroad.

Descriptions of food and places visited were a tease. Made me want to go to China ;-)

About the author:

Taylor Dean lives in Texas and is the mother of four grown children.

Upon finding herself with an empty nest, she began to write the stories that were always wandering around in her head, quickly finding she had a passion for writing, specifically romance.

Whether it's paranormal, contemporary, or suspense-you'll find all sub-genres of CLEAN Romance in her line-up.

A hilarious debut novel about a wealthy but fractured Chinese immigrant family that had it all, only to lose every last cent—and about the road trip they take across America that binds them back together

Charles Wang is mad at America. A brash, lovable immigrant businessman who built a cosmetics empire and made a fortune, he’s just been ruined by the financial crisis. Now all Charles wants is to get his kids safely stowed away so that he can go to China and attempt to reclaim his family’s ancestral lands—and his pride.

Charles pulls Andrew, his aspiring comedian son, and Grace, his style-obsessed daughter, out of schools he can no longer afford. Together with their stepmother, Barbra, they embark on a cross-country road trip from their foreclosed Bel-Air home to the upstate New York hideout of the eldest daughter, disgraced art world it-girl Saina. But with his son waylaid by a temptress in New Orleans, his wife ready to defect for a set of 1,000-thread-count sheets, and an epic smash-up in North Carolina, Charles may have to choose between the old world and the new, between keeping his family intact and finally fulfilling his dream of starting anew in China.

Outrageously funny and full of charm, The Wangs vs. the World is an entirely fresh look at what it means to belong in America—and how going from glorious riches to (still name-brand) rags brings one family together in a way money never could.

Saturday, August 20, 2016

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

~*~

For Review:

Inspired by Paris:
Why Borrowing from the French Is Better Than Being French
by Jordan Phillips
-France, Travel
courtesy of author -Thanks!Amazon | Goodreads

First sentence(s):
I have a snapshot of me standing on Finn's shoulders when I was twenty-nine, a trick we'd perfected.

An electrifying novel about marriage and deceit from bestselling author Delia Ephron that follows two couples on vacation in Siracusa, a town on the coast of Sicily, where the secrets they have hidden from one another are exposed and relationships are unraveled.

New Yorkers Michael, a famous writer, and Lizzie, a journalist, travel to Italy with their friends from Maine—Finn; his wife, Taylor; and their daughter, Snow. “From the beginning,” says Taylor, “it was a conspiracy for Lizzie and Finn to be together.” Told Rashomon-style in alternating points of view, the characters expose and stumble upon lies and infidelities past and present. Snow, ten years old and precociously drawn into a far more adult drama, becomes the catalyst for catastrophe as the novel explores collusion and betrayal in marriage.

With her inimitable psychological astute­ness and uncanny understanding of the human heart, Ephron delivers a powerful meditation on marriage, friendship, and the meaning of travel. Set on the sun-drenched coast of the Ionian Sea, Siracusa unfolds with the pacing of a psychological thriller and delivers an unexpected final act that none will see coming.

My two-bits:

Good one for arm-chair traveling as a small town in Sicily is captured via a tourist viewpoint.

Although unlikable characters and their unsavory deeds are the focus of this story. The drama creates a kind of fascination for how things progress and meet its inevitable end.

The narration with four people makes the story come alive moreso. Loved hearing John Slattery ;-)

First sentence(s):
The vinyl banners rippled from the air vent, the restaurant roiling with parents, the bobbing of gymnast heads, music gushing from the weighty speakers keeled on the window ledges.

Zombie sighting:It was like in a horror movie, when a person you are very close to, like one of your family changes. A vampire, a zombie, voice dropping low, eyes murderous. -chapter 11, page 171

How far will you go to achieve a dream? That's the question a celebrated coach poses to Katie and Eric Knox after he sees their daughter Devon, a gymnastics prodigy and Olympic hopeful, compete. For the Knoxes there are no limits--until a violent death rocks their close-knit gymnastics community and everything they have worked so hard for is suddenly at risk.

As rumors swirl among the other parents, Katie tries frantically to hold her family together while also finding herself irresistibly drawn to the crime itself. What she uncovers--about her daughter's fears, her own marriage, and herself--forces Katie to consider whether there's any price she isn't willing to pay to achieve Devon's dream.

From a writer with "exceptional gifts for making nerves jangle and skin crawl" (Janet Maslin), You Will Know Me is a breathless rollercoaster of a novel about the desperate limits of parental sacrifice, furtive desire, and the staggering force of ambition.

My two-bits:

This is a dark story that incorporates the world of women's gymnastics. We get insight on some of the ins and outs of what it takes to rise to the top in this sport.

Although the focus is on the star gymnast, the story involves the family and how their motivations and sacrifices affect their individual lives.

I found this to be another one of those stories without likable characters, but kept me interested.

FEEDBACK is a full-length Newsflesh novel which overlaps the events of Feed and covers the Presidential campaign from the perspective of reporters covering the Democrats side of the story.

There are two sides to every story...

The year was 2014. We had cured cancer. We had beat the common cold. But in doing so we unleashed something horrifying and unstoppable. The infection spread leaving those afflicted with a single uncontrollable impulse: FEED.

Now, twenty years after the Rising, a team of scrappy underdog reporters relentlessly pursue the truth while competing against the superstar Masons, surrounded by the infected, and facing more insidious forces working in the shadows.

First sentence(s):
Despite her mother's impassioned insistence to the contrary, Evie Selby had never thought of herself as beautiful.

A fierce, feisty, and “wonderfully entertaining” (Scott Westerfeld, author of Uglies) debut with a magical twist about three ordinary, regular girls who suddenly have their fantasies come true…or do they?

Best friends Evie, Krista, and Willow are just trying to make it through their mid-twenties in New York. They’re regular girls, with average looks and typical quarter-life crises: making it up the corporate ladder, making sense of online dating, and making rent.

Until they come across Pretty, a magic tincture that makes them, well...gorgeous. Like, supermodel gorgeous. And it’s certainly not their fault if the sudden gift of beauty causes unexpected doors to open for them.

But there’s a dark side to Pretty, too, and as the gloss fades for these modern-day Cinderellas, there’s just one question left:

What would you sacrifice to be Pretty?

My two-bits:

Nothing like a pretty pink cover and luscious red lipstick to lure in chick-lit lovers ;-)

This is a modern day fairy tale kind of story with current dating scene scenarios and single living lifestyle in a big city. Throw in some magical craziness and you get a cute and fun read!

Issues explored include beauty, feminism, love (not just the hetero kind) and self-esteem.

About the author:
Georgia Clark is widely published in women’s and lifestyle magazines, has written for TV, and performs improv. She’s the author of fiction novel The Regulars, and the YA novels She’s With The Band and Parched. A native Australian, Georgia lives in Brooklyn with her girlfriend and a fridge full of cheese.

~*~

* review copy courtesy of and part of Last Days of Summer Blog Tour @booksparks

Monday, August 15, 2016

Neighbor Dearest is LIVE and on limited-time release sale for $3.99
(Changing to $4.99 after release. This will be the ONLY sale.)
A sexy STANDALONE friends-to-lovers story
that does NOT have to be read in conjunction with any other book.

From New York Times bestselling author, Penelope Ward, comes a sexy new STANDALONE novel.

After getting dumped, the last thing I needed was to move next door to someone who reminded me of my ex-boyfriend, Elec.

Damien was a hotter version of my ex.

The neighbor I’d dubbed “Angry Artist” also had two massive dogs that kept me up with their barking.

He wanted nothing to do with me. Or so I thought until one night I heard laughter coming through an apparent hole in my bedroom wall.

Damien had been listening to all of my phone sessions with my therapist.

The sexy artist next door now knew all of my deepest secrets and insecurities.

We got to talking.

He set me straight with tips to get over my breakup.

He became a good friend, but Damien made it clear that he couldn’t be anything more.

Problem was, I was falling hard for him anyway. And as much as he pushed me away, I knew he felt the same…because his heartbeat didn’t lie.

I thought my heart had been broken by Elec, but it was alive and beating harder than ever for Damien.

I just hoped he wouldn’t shatter it for good.

Author's note – Neighbor Dearest is a full-length standalone novel. Due to strong language and sexual content, this book is not intended for readers under the age of 18.

=====> Looks like a fun one ;-)

About the author:
Penelope Ward is a New York Times, USA Today and #1 Wall Street Journal Bestselling author. She grew up in Boston with five older brothers and spent most of her twenties as a television news anchor, before switching to a more family-friendly career. She is the proud mother of a beautiful 11-year-old girl with autism and a 9-year-old boy. Penelope and her family reside in Rhode Island.

Simple, eloquent vignettes in #30 Collantes Street lend fresh eyes to the splendor of Philippine nature and rhythmic pace of the life to first-time visitors and maybe even more so to Filipinas/os born and raised in the Philippines. Then, there’s that last sweltering day on the beasty Manila streets, where the author discovers what she truly is made of.

My two-bits:

Having visited the Philippines twice in my life as a child, familiar scenes and imagery touched me while reading this.

Saturday, August 13, 2016

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

=====> Decided to make my Korean book reading official by creating a challenge. If I get other participants I will throw in a giveaway with it. As I am starting it mid-year books read earlier this year are eligible

A love story develops between Captain Yoo Shi Jin, from South Korean Special Forces and Doctor Kang Mo Yeon, who works as a Surgeon at Haesung Hospital in Seoul. They will find themselves in the middle of great events and deadly dangers, both in their Motherland and in the fictitious, war-torn country of Urk.

=====> Loving it - totally living up to the hype.
Coincidentally for this post, I found a Harry Potter reference - one of the soldier's moniker.

Currently flipping through: various Duran Duran scrapbooks

=====> Reliving some high school fangirl moments before going to a Duran Duran concert at the end of the month ;-)

~*~

* comment and TELL me what you have acquired for your shelves recently

First sentence(s):
In class we say That's too on the nose when someone has written a story or a scene where exactly what you think should happen does happen.

Zombie sighting:There was just no stopping the mud, be we dealt with it the best way we knew how. We even played in it; we'd cake it on our faces, act like zombies, and try to scare Brian as he practiced with his band in the garage.
-chapter 2, page 31

From USA TODAY bestselling author Renée Carlino (Before We Were Strangers), a warm and witty novel about a struggling writer who must come to grips with her past, present, and future after she discovers that she’s the inspiration for a pseudonymously published bestselling novel.

When a bestselling debut novel from mysterious author J. Colby becomes the literary event of the year, Emiline reads it reluctantly. As an adjunct writing instructor at UC San Diego with her own stalled literary career and a bumpy long-term relationship, Emiline isn’t thrilled to celebrate the accomplishments of a young and gifted writer.

Yet from the very first page, Emiline is entranced by the story of Emerson and Jackson, two childhood best friends who fall in love and dream of a better life beyond the long dirt road that winds through their impoverished town in rural Ohio.

That’s because the novel is patterned on Emiline’s own dark and desperate childhood, which means that “J. Colby” must be Jase: the best friend and first love she hasn’t seen in over a decade. Far from being flattered that he wrote the novel from her perspective, Emiline is furious that he co-opted her painful past and took some dramatic creative liberties with the ending.

The only way she can put her mind at ease is to find and confront “J. Colby,” but is she prepared to learn the truth behind the fiction?

My two-bits:

The format of this novel is a story within a story which plays out well. The tension and conflict in both storylines were equally drawn and had me wondering (with a bit of swooning) through to the end.

Some aspects of a writer's life are presented within these pages from pre-fame short story writing/journaling to successful book tour event traveling.

Got me thinking of those moments in life when things can't wait and you just have to go for it.